Grades/Level: Lower Elementary (K–2), Upper Elementary (3–5), Middle School (6–8), High School (9–12), Adult Learners
Subjects: Visual Arts, English–Language Arts, ESL
Time Required: Single Class Lesson
1-hour class period
Author: J. Paul Getty Museum Education Staff

Permissions:
The lesson plan and downloadable materials on this page are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Lesson Overview

This lesson focuses on an interior space depicted in a work of art. Students practice using vocabulary associated with a room and objects in the room. Activities in this lesson focus on writing descriptive sentences using some of the elements of art (color and texture) and adjectives.

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:
• orally describe the color and texture of objects.
• use adjectives in a written sentence to describe objects in a room.

Materials

• Reproduction of Amadeo Sandoval's Kitchen and Bedroom, Río Lucío, New Mexico by Alex Harris
• Information for Teaching about Amadeo Sandoval's Kitchen and Bedroom, Río Lucío, New Mexico by Alex Harris
• A picture dictionary that illustrates different kinds of rooms
• Teacher Resource: "Art Vocabulary"
• Bag of items of different textures
• Student Handout: "How Does It Feel?"
• Paper and pencils

Lesson Steps

1. Display images from a picture dictionary showing different types of domestic rooms (kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, etc.). List the names of these rooms on the board and ask students to suggest additional rooms found in houses or apartments (such as playroom, laundry room, living room, etc.).

2. Ask students to describe the use of a room by identifying one activity they can do in that room. Examples: I cook in my kitchen. I sleep in a bedroom.

3. Show a reproduction of the photograph Amadeo Sandoval's Kitchen and Bedroom, Río Lucío, New Mexico. (See the Information for Teaching about Amadeo Sandoval's Kitchen and Bedroom, Río Lucío, New Mexico by Alex Harris.) Lead a class discussion by asking students the following questions:

• What type of room do you see in the foreground?
• What activity(ies) can you do in this room?
• What type of room do you see in the background?
• What activity(ies) can you do in this room?

Extensions

• Ask students to orally describe some of the colors and textures in the classroom.
  
  
• Have students bring in a picture of a room in their home. Ask students to write a sentence that describes an object in the room and identifies the room it is in.

Standards Addressed

Common Core Standards for English Language Arts

Grades K–5

SPEAKING AND LISTENING
K.1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and text with peers and adults in small and larger groups.
K.6 Speak audibly and express thoughts, feelings, and ideas clearly.
1.3 Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to gather additional information or clarify something that is not understood.
1.4 Describe familiar people places, things, and events, with relative details expressing ideas and feelings more clearly.
1.6 Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 1 Language standards 1 and 3 for specific expectations.)
2.3 Ask and answer questions about what a speaker says in order to clarify comprehension, gather information, or deepen understanding of a topic or issue.
2.4 Tell a story or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking audible in coherent sentences.
3.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
4.1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 4 topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
4.6 Differentiate between contexts that call for formal English (e.g., presenting ideas) and situations where informal discourse is appropriate (e.g., small-group discussion); use formal English when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 4 Language standards 1 and 3 for specific expectations.)
5.3 Summarize the points a speaker or media source makes and explain how each claim is supported by reasons and evidence, and identify and analyze any logical fallacies.
5.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, using formal English when appropriate to task and situation. (See grade 5 Language standards 1 and 3 for specific expectations.)

LANGUAGE
3.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
3.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate conversational, general academic, and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal spatial and temporal relationships (e.g., After dinner that night we went looking for them).
4.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
4.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal precise actions, emotions, or states of being (e.g., quizzed, whined, stammered) and that are basic to a particular topic (e.g., wildlife, conservation, and endangered when discussing animal preservation).
5.3 Use knowledge of language and its conventions when writing, speaking, reading, or listening.
5.6 Acquire and use accurately grade-appropriate general academic and domain-specific words and phrases, including those that signal contrast, addition, and other logical relationships (e.g., however, although, nevertheless, similarly, moreover, in addition).